Golden Key Series by Melanie Rawn, Kate Elliott, Jennifer Roberson

Bestselling author Melanie Rawn's triumphant return to high fantasy. The only survivor of royal treachery that eliminates his entire family, Azzad al-Ma'aliq flees to the desert and dedicates himself to vengeance. With the help of the Shagara, a nomadic tribe of powerful magicians, he begins to take his revenge-but at a terrible cost to himself.Prequel novel to The Golden Key.

In Tira Verte births, marriages, treaties and all official documents are painted, not written. The paintings by certain males of the Grijalva family are also magical. This book tells the story of one such painter-magician's obsession with power, with life, and with a love he can never claim.